Great Outdoors
by Rainack
Summary: Takes place after GD. Nick and Greg go on a camping trip, and discover they both have hidden feelings. Slash. Don't like, don't read. Please review. :  Rated M for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Okay, don't own 'em, just love 'em. Whew, that's out of the way. :) Not quite sure where this story is going as of yet, except into the forest for a camping trip, but...

Anyway, this takes place shortly after Grave Danger.

Feedback is always welcome.

Great Outdoors

Chapter 1

Nick Stokes stared at his friend, Warrick Brown, in disbelief. Warrick had been the one to plan the whole trip – even though it had been Grissom who had basically demanded they all go – and now he was backing out of it, and at the last minute, no less.

"Man, I'm sorry. Something came up, and I can't go. You and Sanders go ahead. Have fun!" the tall mocha skinned African-American said, as he climbed back into his Ford Mustang and drove away, not giving Nick a chance to say anything else.

One of the horses stomped its hoof impatiently in the horse trailer, making a dull ringing thud sound in the cool early morning air. Greg was already sitting in the front seat of Nick's truck, and the back end of the truck had been loaded down with everything the three men would need for a week of camping out under the stars and horseback riding the mountain trails.

Now it looked like Nick was going to be alone, in the mountains, with the man he'd found himself attracted to for years. And that was all he'd allowed it to be for several reasons.

Just after he'd found out he'd been hired on at the Las Vegas Crime Lab, Nick had come out to his parents, telling them he was bi. He'd been pleasantly surprised by their reaction. He hadn't been disowned, as he'd thought he probably would be. Instead, his father had calmly asked if that was why Nick was going to Vegas. Nick had replied, "No, Dad. I feel stifled here. I need to go somewhere where our family isn't known." Judge Stokes had softly replied, "Okay. Just keep in mind God's feelings towards same sex relations, if you ever decide to indulge in that side of your sexuality."

That was one of the reasons he and Greg would never be. The others being that Nick just didn't know if Greg swung that way or not, and that they were co-workers, and if things ended badly, they'd still have to work together everyday.

There had been a couple of times Nick had seriously thought about confessing his attraction to the younger man. After the lab explosion had nearly cost Greg his life had been the first time. And more recently. Just weeks ago, after spending days in the hospital recovering from fire ant bites after his rescue from being buried alive. But both times, he had come to his senses.

Grissom, socially inept supervisor that he was, had basically told Warrick and Greg to get Nick out of the house for a week. Nick was still on medical leave, pending his therapy sessions with the department shrink, and his psyche evaluation. And for some reason, Grissom seemed to think that spending a whole week out in the forest with his two best friends would make everything better for Nick.

Nick had reluctantly agreed to do as Grissom demanded, his only saving grace being the thought that it be the three of them, not just him and Greg, and now here they were, just Nick and Greg, going camping.

Heaving a sigh, Nick watched Warrick's car turn the corner at the end of the street, then went to the driver's side of his four door Silvarado and climbed in.

"Why'd Warrick leave?" Greg asked, eyeing Nick curiously.

Nick shrugged, "He said something came up and he couldn't go, but he didn't say what."

"We can call the whole thing off, if you want," Greg said, watching Nick grip the steering wheel of the truck in a near white knuckle hold.

Heaving another huge sigh, Nick said, "No, we'd better just go. If we don't, we won't hear the end of it from Grissom."

Greg hid a flinch, "Okay, Nick. Whatever you want to do." The way Nick had made it sound like a chore – going camping with Greg – cut Greg to the quick.

Pulling away from the curb, Nick headed out towards the ninety-five north, to pick up the one fifty-seven, out to Mount Charleston.

They rode in silence for a while, Nick figuring the silence was better than the Country music he had slowly begun to detest over the last few weeks, and not wanting to subject himself to Greg's aurally offensive music.

When they'd reached the one fifty-seven, Nick said, "So, what possessed you to agree to this trip in the first place? Have you ever been horseback riding, or camping?"

"Grissom threatened to suspend me without pay for two weeks, if I didn't agree. I'm pretty sure he was bluffing, but I wasn't going to take the chance," he chuckled nervously before continuing. "I have only been horseback riding once in my life. When I was little, I bugged my mom to get me riding lessons until she finally agreed. She dropped me off for my first lesson, not going in with me. I don't know why she didn't, but... Well, when she came back to pick me up, and saw how big the horse was in comparison to me – I think I was nine at the time – she canceled the rest of my lessons and told me that if I ever mentioned horses or horseback riding in her presence again, she'd wash my mouth out with the foulest tasting soap she could find." He laughed again before going on. "I have actually been camping a few times. It was easier to hide the fact that I'd nearly tripped and fell into the campfire from my mom, who never went with us."

Nick looked over at Greg, before returning his eyes to the road, "Your mom really didn't let you do much as a kid, did she." It made him glad that he grew up in the family he did.

"Man, you don't know the half of it! I was afraid she wasn't going to let me go off to college. When I got the job at the lab, I had to tell her I had signed a contract, and couldn't back out of it, or they'd throw me in jail," he grinned cheekily at Nick, who smiled in return. "I had to threaten to change my phone number and not give it to her, to get her to stop calling me every single day. Instead, she calls me twice a week."

They spent the rest of the trip talking, though by unspoken agreement, they avoided talking about work.

At the trail head parking lot, Nick found a spot where the truck and trailer would fit, and parked.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Greg climbed down out of Nick's truck and stretched. By nature, he was not the type of person to sit still for long, so the two hour truck ride from Vegas to Mount Henderson had been nearly unbearable for him. He took a deep breath of the mountain air, still crisp at this time of the morning.

Ambling to the back of the trailer, Greg stood to the side, as Nick opened the ramp, and went into the trailer to begin bringing the horses out. He could hear Nick talking soothingly to the animals, as he pushed them aside so he could get to the head of one of them. The heavy clump of hooves on metal rang out, as the first horse backed slowly out of the trailer.

"This is Mishi," Nick said, as he lead the large roan gelding around Greg to the side of the trailer. He tied the horse's lead rope to a loop of metal welded to the side of the trailer for this purpose, then went back into the trailer for the next horse. He had brought four horses in all. Originally, there was one horse per camper, plus a pack horse, but since Warrick wasn't there, they would have two pack horses.

The next horse Nick brought out wasn't quite as large as Mishi. "This is Deedra. You'll be riding her," he said, as he lead the brown horse past Greg, to another of the metal loops. Deedra's body was all brown, but her main and tale were black, what Greg thought was known as a bay horse.

"You need me to do anything?" Greg asked, taking a step away from Deedra, as she stamped a hoof impatiently on the ground.

Nick was already back in the trailer again, backing the third horse out of the trailer. "There are brushes in the tack box, you can get one out and start brushing Deedra."

"Uh..." Greg began, uncertain what a tack box was, or where it would be found.

With a sigh, Nick said, "Driver's side, front of the trailer, bottom door. It's unlocked. Open it up and get the brushes out."

Waiting until Nick had finished unloading the third horse, so he wouldn't startle the animal by walking behind it unexpectedly, Greg went around to the front of the trailer and opened the door Nick had told him to. He dug through the saddles and other equipment until he found two brushes, and took them both out.

Nick was just tying the third horse up on the driver's side of the trailer, as Greg was about to walk behind the horse.

"Never walk behind a horse without letting it know you're there, G," Nick said, bringing Greg to a quick stop. "Put your hand on her rump, and trail it across, so she knows you're back there. Otherwise, you're going to end up getting kicked."

Looking across the horse's back at Nick, Greg could see the other man grinning at him. It was a look of friendly concern, and Greg didn't hear any condescension in the older man's voice.

Following Nick's directions, Greg made his way back to the other side of the trailer, where he set one of the brushes down on the fender, and began to brush Deedra with the other.

Once Nick had unloaded the last horse and tied it on the other side of the trailer, he came around and picked up the brush Greg had left on the fender. He thumped Mishi gently on the nose, and spoke a sharp, "Mishi!" as the animal had been chewing on the brush. After inspecting the brush for damage, and finding it minimal, Nick began to brush Mishi with long measured strokes.

"So, these are your horses?" Greg asked, as he glanced back over his shoulder to see if there was any special technique to brushing a horse.

"Yeah. I had them sent out the year after I started at the lab. I don't get to ride them often, but the stable where I board them gives me a discount on food and board for allowing them to be used in the riding classes they conduct. Mishi is the only one I don't let them use. He's too high strung." As if to emphasize Nick's point, Mishi turned his head to try to nip at Nick, earning him another gentle thump on the nose. This time, the horse sneezed, spraying Nick with snot. The horse then let out a low whicker, as if he were laughing, and Greg realized that the two were actually playing.

"He's laughing at you!" Greg said, with a low chuckle of his own, as he watched Nick scraping horse snot from his face and arms.

"Don't ever let it be said that horses don't have a sense of humor," Nick said with a chuckle of his own.

They settled back into brushing the horses, and Greg discovered that it was quite calming. He was surprised that Nick hadn't taken the time to visit his horses, since he'd gotten out of the hospital, but figured it wasn't any of his business as to why he hadn't.

"Deedra's good," Nick said a few minutes later, startling Greg by his proximity. He turned to find Nick looking over his shoulder at Deedra's gleaming coat, and had to swallow a sudden lump in his throat. How the hell was he going to get through this week in such close confines with Nick? They may be in the great outdoors, with all of nature's room to them, but Greg felt as if he was in a tiny little space with the object of his desire.

Clearing his throat, Greg said, "You want me to go brush the other two?"

"You do that, while I get Mishi and Deedra saddled," Nick replied easily, apparently not noticing Greg's sudden unease.

"Okay," Greg squeaked, then cleared his throat and ducked under Deedra's head to go around the trailer again.

More long even strokes of the brush, but it wasn't as calming to Greg, now. His mind had revved up over exactly why he was here, with Nick. It was going to lead to disaster, that's the only thing that could happen. Everyone at the lab knew that Nick was straight. He was a ladies man, for crying out loud. There was no way one Nick Stokes would go for one Greg Sanders. No way! The only reason he had agreed to this week of camping was because Warrick was going to be there, too. Well, that and he really didn't want to call Grissom's bluff.

"Greg," the voice just floated past Greg's ear. "Greg," a little louder this time, but it still went right past him. Finally, "G! You're going to brush a bald spot into poor Rocky, there!"

Greg came back to himself, looking at his arm, repeatedly brushing the same spot, over and over again. "Oh, sorry!"

"Don't worry about it," Nick smiled at him, taking the brush from Greg's hand. There hands brushed against each other, and Greg nearly jerked his back from Nick's because of the sparks that he swore should have been visible between them.

Blushing furiously, Greg ducked under Rocky's head and fled back to the other side of the trailer. Patting Deedra's neck, Greg leaned his forehead against her neck. He twisted his head, so he could watch Nick's silhouette through the trailer, as the older man walked back and forth between the bed of the truck and the two pack horses.

A few minutes later, Nick had locked the truck and trailer up, and was leading the two pack horses over to the passenger side of the trailer. He had already tied Rocky to the other horse, and now proceeded to tie that horse to Mishi.

"Okay, we're ready. Mount up and I'll check that your stirrups are adjusted properly," Nick said, watching Greg with what the younger man was sure was a knowing look.

Placing a booted foot carefully into the stirrup in front of him, Greg levered himself up into the saddle, and found his knees drawn up uncomfortably.

"Take your feet out of the stirrups for a minute," Nick said, reaching under the saddle to adjust the length of the stirrup on this side of the horse. After a few minutes, he got the stirrup adjusted to Greg's six foot one frame, then went to the other side of the horse to do the same there.

When Nick was done, he handed Greg the reins, and said, "Okay, let me mount up, and we'll be off."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

They had been riding for a while, the creaking of saddle leather the only sound, when Greg called back over his shoulder to Nick, "Whoever designed the saddle sure didn't have comfort in mind."

"Actually, the saddle is much more comfortable than a horse's bare back. I don't think you're sitting right. Stop, and I'll come up there and help you adjust your seat," Nick called back. Dismounting, he dropped Mishi's reins to the ground, a signal to his horse to stay put.

As he examined the way Greg was sitting in the saddle, Nick felt heat rise up his neck, and prayed he wasn't turning bright red.

"Part of your problem is that you're sitting too far back in the saddle," Nick said. "Scoot forward some." Unable to stop himself, he reached up and put his hand on Greg's lower back, gently pushing the younger man forward in the saddle. "Also, don't let your feet hang loose like that. Turn your toes forward, and grip with your thighs." Now Nick took Greg's booted foot in his hands and twisted it gently so the point of the boot faced forward. As he was telling Greg about gripping with his thighs, Nick's hand strayed up to Greg's inner thigh. Every place he touched Greg, he felt electricity, like tiny sparks, flowing between them, and he wondered how Greg couldn't see them.

Looking up at Greg, Nick saw the younger man's eyes on his hand, and pulled it away, as if he'd been burned. After muttering, "That should be more comfortable," Nick retreated to Mishi, where he thumped the horse a bit harder on the nose than he'd intended to, when Mishi playfully tried to take a chunk out of his shin. Right about now, Nick was insanely glad he was bringing up the rear.

As they continued on, Nick tried to take in the scenery, but his eyes kept straying back to Greg. The way the younger man was swaying lightly in the saddle was intoxicating, and Nick's jeans had become uncomfortable. He tried to drag his eyes away again, looking into the trees, instead. Concentrating on a bird call, he tried to figure out what kind of bird it was, only to find his eyes back on Greg again a moment later.

A sharp pain in his shin brought his mind sharply into focus a few minutes later, and he let out a yelp, and loud, "Ow! Mishi, you are a damned incorrigible beast!"

Greg pulled Deedra up, and twisted around in his saddle to see what had happened. When he spotted Nick leaning over in his saddle, rubbing at his shin, where Mishi had twisted his head back to bite him, Greg let out a laugh. "You okay, Nicky?" he asked a moment later, when he'd managed to stop laughing.

"Damned horse bit me!" Nick was glad he was still leaning over where Greg couldn't see him, as his face was surely bright red from the way Greg had spoken his name. This was the first time Greg had ever used Nick's nickname. Usually it was Catherine or Grissom who called him that, and very rarely, 'Rick would say his name that way, if he was concerned about his friend.

Mishi tossed his head up and down a few times, as if he were nodding, saying in his own way, "Damn straight, I bit you! What are you going to do about it!"

Nick decided it was Mishi's way of helping him keep his mind off of what he could never have, and silently thanked the horse, through his pain.

They stopped at midday for lunch. Nick carefully unpacked just what they would need for their meal, then packed everything back away when they were done. Everything they brought in with them, they had to take back out, so it was important to make sure it was packed properly, or they would have a mess on their hands.

Mishi tried to bite Nick several more times before they stopped for the night, he succeeded a couple of times, causing Nick to curse at him soundly. Greg laughed at him both times, and Nick was mortified that Greg knew exactly why Mishi was succeeding.

They had stopped in a secluded camping area, nestled in ring of trees. The sky stretched out above them, and Nick knew it would be perfect for looking at the stars, once the sun went down. Right now, though, they had work to do. Greg helped him tend to the horses, unloading them, and feeding them from the store of grain they'd brought along.

The rush of water signaled a nearby stream, so Nick sent Greg with a bucket to get water, while he gathered wood to start a fire in the fire ring at the center of the campsite. Once he got the fire going, he worked on putting up the tent, and set their things inside.

When Greg returned, Nick set about filtering and boiling the water as a precaution against parasites and other nasties.

"Need any help with anything else, Nick?"

Now it was Nick's turn to jump from the proximity of the other man's voice. He looked up to find Greg avidly watching what he was doing. "Sure. I think I've got enough boiled and filtered water now, if you want to make some coffee."

Greg took the pitcher of water that Nick offered him and moved to the other side of the campfire to set about fixing a pot of coffee. Nick could see him pull the bag of ground coffee from one of the pack bags and open it to take a whiff. He smiled, as he watched Greg's eyes close in pleasure at the smell of Blue Hawaiian.

"You got the good stuff," Greg sighed, as he continued preparing the coffee.

"What can I say, Greggo. You've gotten half the lab addicted to that stuff," Nick replied, as he finished up with filtering the last of the water.

After a true campfire dinner of beans and coffee, Nick stretched out on the ground, and gazed up into the night sky. Greg was sitting across the campfire from him, and all he had to do was twist his head ever so slightly to see the younger man. At the moment, he was pretty sure Greg was watching him intently.

The campfire let out a loud pop, and a spray of sparks rose up into the sky. Nick saw Greg wince and turn his head away, hiding suddenly glistening eyes. He wondered what Greg would do, if he went over there and put an arm around him comfortingly, but squashed the thought nearly as quickly as he'd had it.

Greg's voice drifted quietly across the fire, and at first Nick wasn't sure he'd heard the younger man correctly.

"What was that, G?"

Clearing his throat, Greg repeated, "D- does the dark bother you?"

Turning his head towards Greg again, Nick saw clear, dry eyes on him again. "The dark? No. It's anything that glows green that bothers me," Nick found himself responding truthfully. Then he asked a question of his own, "Does the fire bother you?"

"No." He flinched again, as another piece of wood popped loudly, sending up another shower of sparks. "It's the popping sounds." Rising, Greg said, "You know, I think I'm going to go to bed. Good night, Nick."

"Night, G," Nick replied, looking up at the night sky, once more.

Greg came back out a minute later, a look of confusion on his face. "Hey, Nick? Who used the sleeping bags last?"

"Hmm? Oh, I think 'Rick did. Why?"

A nervous laugh escaped the younger man, and he held up a couple of items in his hand. "I don't think you'll ever want to ALS them."

Nick focused on the things in Greg's hand, and felt heat rising in his neck again. "Are those... what I think they are?" he almost couldn't finish the sentence, couldn't even bring himself to say the words. Condoms. Lube.

"Uh, yeah," Greg replied. "Wh- what should I do with them? I mean... I guess I can put them in with my stuff." Nick couldn't really tell in the dim light from the campfire, but he thought Greg was beat red.

"Yeah. Yeah. Okay," Nick replied. He was relieved when Greg turned and went back into the tent. Laying back again, Nick thought to himself. _Why would... 'Rick? No! Could 'Rick possibly know? But then, that would mean... Is it possible that both 'Rick and Grissom know and are trying to get Greg and I together?_

Shaking his head, he tried to go back to stargazing. He wasn't ready to go to bed, yet, as he knew what would most likely happen, if he did. He'd have a nightmare, probably wake up screaming. Greg would probably try to comfort him, and Nick wasn't sure what he'd do, if Greg did that, but it would probably be something totally inappropriate.

When it became too cold to even be sitting by the fire, Nick finally went into the tent and took off his shoes, before crawling into his sleeping bag.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Early morning sunlight filtering through the tent walls woke Greg up the next morning. Looking over to Nick's side of the tent, he saw that the older man had already gotten up, and left the tent. His sleeping bag was rolled up neatly and sat next to the rest of his things, just inside the tent flap.

Greg had tried to mentally prepare himself for the possibility of his sleep being interrupted by the other man having a nightmare, but that hadn't happened. Of course, that didn't mean Nick hadn't had a nightmare, just that he hadn't woken up screaming. When Grissom had roped Greg and 'Rick into this trip, he had sat them both down and told them about the probability of Nick suffering nightmares. "Everyone pulls themselves out of those dream states differently. Some people scream, others just wake up. In cases similar to what Nick's probably experiencing, though, the dreamer is rarely able to just roll over and go back to sleep," Grissom had informed them.

Shivering slightly in the morning chill, Greg got himself out of his sleeping bag and snatched up his jacket and boots. After putting them on, he exited the tent.

Nick was tending to the horses, his back to Greg. The cold must not have been bothering him, because he wasn't wearing his jacket, just a snug fitting gray T-shirt. It bunched and moved over Nick's back muscles, as he brushed Mishi, and Greg felt saliva gathering in his mouth. He wondered what it would feel like to run his hands over those muscles, only to squash the thought as quickly as possible, as he felt his jeans suddenly grow tight.

Not wanting to startle Nick, he called out, "Good morning!" before heading over towards the horses.

"Hey!" was Nick's easy response. He didn't turn toward Greg, just called back over his shoulder, "There's coffee on the fire."

"Perfect!" Greg breathed out, turning mid-stride towards the campfire. After pouring a cup and setting it aside to cool a little, he straightened back up and stretched. "Man, I'm sore!" Muscles he didn't even know he had protested as he tried to stretch the kinks out of them.

"You'll get used to it. I'm a little sore, myself. It's been a while since I've been in the saddle for a whole day like that." Nick thumped Mishi's nose again, as the gelding tried to take a chunk from his ass, this time.

Mishi must have at least partially succeeded, because Greg got a nice view of Nick rubbing his left ass cheek through his jeans. "I swear to God, I'm going to sell you for dog food!" Nick quipped at the horse. Greg could tell he was only joking by the playful tone of his voice.

An hour later, they had eaten, extinguished the campfire, and finished loading the horses up.

Nick was watching as Greg mounted up, so Greg deliberately sat a little too far back in the saddle, hoping to get Nick's hands on him again.

"You're going to be even sorer, if you sit that far back in the saddle, G," Nick said, but he didn't approach Deedra, as he was too busy trying to avoid Mishi's teeth again.

Greg couldn't contain his laughter at Mishi's antics, and nearly fell back out of the saddle.

After vaulting into his own saddle, Nick shot a glare Greg's way, before turning Mishi's head towards the trail and signaling him to a trot.

Wheeling Deedra around, Greg squeezed his legs, and she jumped forward, nearly unseating him. Regaining his balance, he called out, "Hey! Wait for me, Nick!"

Nick's only response was to flip him off, and Greg's heart fell at the thought that he'd gone too far in laughing at Nick, and pissed the older man off.

When Nick finally slowed down, Greg pulled Deedra up alongside Mishi. "I'm sorry, Nick. I didn't mean to make you mad. It's just funny how Mishi seems to have it in for you."

When he finally spoke, Nick's voice was all seriousness, but Greg could see a wide smile on his face, and a twinkle in his eye, "Just remember, G, I know how to hide a body so it won't be found, and if it is, there won't be any evidence left behind."

"Point taken," Greg replied, grinning at Nick.

Patting Mishi's neck, Nick said, "You hear that, Mish! You keep biting me, no one will ever find your body!"

Mishi's ears swivelled back towards Nick, then pricked forward again. He unexpectedly danced sideways, towards the edge of the trail, as if to say, "That threat could go both ways, buddy!"

The two pack horses snorted uneasily at the sudden shift towards the edge of the trail, but Nick kept his seat easily, and slapped Mishi's rump twice in reproval.

Just after midday, the trail took a steep downturn, causing Greg – who had been in the lead at the time – to pull Deedra up short.

"What's wrong, G?" Nick called up to him, as he couldn't really see ahead of Greg very well.

"That's a steep downslope there, Nick," Greg called back, glancing over his shoulder at the older man worriedly. "How do we get down there?"

Shifting Mishi around a bit so he could finally see past Deedra and Greg, Nick said, "Nah, that's not too bad. Give Deedra her head. She'll do all the work. Just go along for the ride. Lean back. She may slide a little, but it'll be okay. She knows what she's doing."

"Okay," Greg said uncertainly, before urging Deedra forward. He loosened the reins so Deedra could turn her head more freely. As Deedra began the descent, Greg leaned back as Nick had told him to, finding himself almost laying flat on his own back against the mare's back, as she continued down the steep slope. As Nick had said, she slid a few times, and Greg had to fight down a panic response to tighten his hold on the reins. But Deedra got him to the bottom in one piece.

Once he'd caught his breath, Greg turned Deedra, so he could watch Nick's slow progress down the slope with Mishi and the two pack horses. When Mishi and the pack horses got to the bottom of the slope, Nick dismounted to double check that everything was still sitting properly and securely on the pack horses. When that was done, he mounted up and they continued on until just before sundown.

The campsite was much like the one from the night before, but there was another couple there. They were working their way back up the trail to the trail head. As Nick had begun unloading the horses near one of the unused fire pits, one of their neighbors walked over and introduced himself.

"Nice horses you've got there! Name's Dan O'Neill, and that's my wife, April." Greg watched Nick shake Dan's hand a bit warily, and wondered if that wariness was due to the fact that he'd been abducted by a complete stranger.

"I'm Nick Stokes, and that's my friend, Greg Sanders," Nick replied, before handing Greg the tent to go set up. "If you don't mind, I need to get this finished up, so I can go gather some firewood, before it gets too dark," Nick said, pulling the rest of the packs from Rocky's back before moving to the other pack horse and unloading her.

"We have plenty of firewood, if you'd like to share," Dan replied, moving out of Nick's way, so Nick could carry one of the packs to the tent.

Even as he set up the tent, Greg watched Nick, and how he reacted to the other man's offer. A forced smile settled on Nick's face. "Thanks! That's very kind of you." Greg didn't think he'd ever seen a forced smile on Nick's face, and to see it now worried him.

When Dan walked away to gather up some of the extra firewood he and his wife had gathered, Greg went over to Nick. "You okay, man?"

Rubbing his hands across his face, Nick let the forced smile drop away. "I just didn't come out here to be social with strangers. You know, G?"

"Yeah, I think I know what you mean, Nick," Greg replied, clapping Nick gently on the shoulder, before going back to his task.

When Dan returned, and seemed intent on making small talk after delivering the firewood, Greg intervened, "We're actually both pretty tired. Just going to eat, and turn in. Maybe we can talk in the morning?"

"Oh, okay. Sure," Dan had replied, giving the two men an odd look before wandering back to his own campsite.

Greg could have sworn he heard Dan say to his wife, "I think those two are..." at which point, April cut him off with, "Shut up and mind your own business, Dan!"

After a hasty bite to eat, both men retired to the tent. Greg actually found that he was pretty tired, so he pulled off his boots and crawled into his sleeping bag. Within minutes of curling up on his side, he was asleep.

Sometime during the night, a scream awakened him. Brought to instant alertness, Greg knew without a doubt that it was Nick. Hearing a frantic rustling sound, Greg scrambled towards the older man.

It was hard to see in the dim light, but Greg could just make out Nick's arms, as they flailed about, frantically scratching at imagined ant bites. Nick's feet were kicking at the sleeping bag, trying to rid himself of it. Nick screamed again, only this time, it tapered into a low keening sound.

Afraid Nick might seriously injure himself, Greg grabbed Nick's wrists. Nick's body writhed, as he tried to free his hands. Finding himself nearly thrown free, Greg decided he had no choice but to pin the other man down with his own body.

"Nick!" Greg nearly shouted for what was probably the third or fourth time, but still didn't get a response. Putting his mouth right next to Nick's ear, Greg tried one more time, "Nicky! Wake up!"

Finally, Nick's voice, hoarse and confused: "Greg?"

Pulling back, but not moving off of the older man until he assured himself that Nick was fully awake, Greg gazed down into Nick's eyes, open, but unreadable in the darkness. "You were having a nightmare, Nicky," Greg said. He had to fight the urge to just lean down a little, let his lips touch Nick's. That thought caused a stirring in his groin that he prayed the thickness of the sleeping bag would hide.

Suddenly, Nick surged up, his mouth capturing Greg's in the kiss he'd just been thinking about moments before. A low moan escaped one of them, but Greg wasn't at all sure which.

A voice outside the tent made both men jump, and Greg scramble away from the older man, "Hey, Nick, Greg? You guys okay? We heard screaming."

Unzipping the tent flap enough to poke his head out, Greg blinked at the flashlight beam that was suddenly in his eyes. "Mind lowering that?" he asked, a bit irritated.

"Oops, sorry!" Dan said, lowering the beam of the light to the ground. "You guys okay?"

"Yeah. Thought I heard a mountain cat. Loud noises are supposed to scare them away," Greg lied, hoping the other man would buy it, and leave.

"Oh, okay. As long as everything's okay. Guess I'd better get back to my tent, then."

Greg waited until the other man had left, then zipped the tent flap back up and crawled over to his sleeping bag, where he crawled in and turned his back on Nick. There was no way that kiss had ever happened. No way! It was just some strange after affect of the nightmare that had cause Nick to do that.

"Greg?" Nick's voice was uncertain, scared. "Damn! I'm sorry, Greg! I promised myself I'd never let that happen, and now I think I've gone and screwed up our friendship. Please, look at me."

_He promised himself he'd never let that happen?_ Greg thought to himself in puzzlement. "I've wanted this, you, for so long," it came out as barely more than a whisper, but Greg didn't turn around, afraid that if he did, he'd find it was some cruel joke.

"You have?" Nick's voice was full of astonishment, and relief.

Nick's hand, warm and strong, was on his arm, pulling him onto his back. The older man leaned over Greg, brown eyes meeting Greg's, but still unreadable in the darkness. A flash of white teeth told Greg that Nick had a huge smile on his face, and Greg imagined the look in Nick's eyes was one of warmth, and desire.

This time, it was Greg who surged up, capturing Nick's perfect lips in a searing kiss. Tracing Nick's lower lip with his tongue, Greg moaned, when Nick's lips parted and his tongue met Greg's in a gentle dance of seduction.

Reluctantly pulling back a moment later, Greg said, "I don't think we should do this here." Gesturing with his head in the direction of the couple in the campsite next door, he said, "Not with neighbors around."

"Oh. Yeah, you're probably right," Nick replied, unable to hide his disappointment. "C- could we at least cuddle?"

Scooting over to make room for Nick in the sleeping bag, Greg said, "Sure."

Nick crawled into the sleeping bag, and wrapped his arms around Greg, who rested his head against Nick's chest. A few minutes later, they were both asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Consider yourself warned! Adult situations within!

Chapter 5

Nick woke, but didn't open his eyes. He felt surrounded by warmth, and had to fight down the urge to panic, as the warmth reminded him of the closeness of the plexiglass box he'd been buried in.

When he realized exactly why he felt so warm, his eyes snapped open, and he found himself gazing into Greg's caramel colored eyes. He didn't think he'd ever realized exactly how light a shade of brown they were.

The light of day brought the reasons this couldn't happen crashing back down on him, and he jerked away. Greg released him, but not before Nick caught the sad, confused look in Greg's eyes.

Crouching on the floor of the tent, Nick began to roll up his sleeping bag, back to Greg, so he wouldn't have to face the hurt he'd caused the one person he cared more about than anyone in the world. "I- I'm sorry, Greg. I can't do this! It's wrong for so many reasons..." he trailed off, when Greg's hand touched his arm.

Greg moved around, so he was kneeling in front of Nick, and their eyes met again. Nick couldn't mistake the longing, disappointment, and hurt in Greg's eyes, and he nearly caved at that moment, because it hurt to know that he was the one who had put those emotions in those beautiful brown eyes.

"The day Grissom told me I was going on this trip, he told me something. He said, 'Make him see that his feelings are okay.' At the time, I thought he was talking about your feelings about being buried alive. I guess because I'm the only one at the lab who's ever gone through anything even remotely similar, because of the explosion, I thought he wanted me to talk to you about it, let you know you could talk to me." Greg laughed sarcastically. "I guess Grissom's not quite as lost in his own world as we've always thought. He picked up on how we feel about each other, even when we couldn't see it."

Greg's free hand went up to Nick's face, resting against his cheek. Nick wanted to pull away, but found himself rooted to the spot, unable to move. Then Greg spoke again, "I think I know why you're so afraid of this, us. At one point, when you were in that box, you were praying. It was my turn to keep an eye on you, even though we couldn't do anything, we still felt better watching, than not. I couldn't really tell what you were saying, but I know you were praying." He trailed off for a moment, his thumb brushing across Nick's lower lip, causing a moan to escape the older man. "Do you want to know my view on God and my sexuality?"

A hesitant, jerky nod was all Nick was able to manage.

"God doesn't make mistakes, Nicky. He knew what he was doing, when he made us this way. He wants us to be happy. He wouldn't make us this way, only to deny us happiness." Leaning in towards Nick, Greg brushed his lips across Nick's, and felt the older man tremble under his touch. "Let me show you how happy I can make you. Then, if you still think it's a mistake, I promise to leave you alone."

Nick felt Greg push against him, and allowed himself to be pushed down onto Greg's sleeping bag. "The neighbors..." he began, but Greg cut him off.

"They left really early. I was awake and heard them leave. We're alone, Nicky."

Greg's hands were pushing up under Nick's shirt, exposing skin, and then Greg's hips were grinding into Nick's. Nick gasped, as their erections rubbed together through denim.

It took Nick a few minutes to realize that between kisses, Greg was still talking. Most of the words were nonsensical, but Nick heard his name a few times, as well as what might have been a few Norwegian words, and some curse words. There was only one complete phrase uttered, and Nick wasn't completely certain he'd heard correctly, but he thought Greg murmured, "I love you Nick, have for a long time," before he became completely lost to sensation.

Nick's shirt was gone, and he wasn't sure exactly when that had happened, but now Greg was leaning over his chest, kissing, licking, and nipping. He arched up into Greg, when the younger man's mouth found its way to his left nipple, teasing it into a hard nub.

Reaching for Greg's shirt, Nick practically tore it off over Greg's head, then let his hands wander over the lightly muscled chest the shirt's removal had exposed. Then Greg was too far away, working his way down Nick's chest, now at his stomach, teasing his belly button with his tongue, making Nick's breath hitch in his chest with each new sensation.

Greg's lips ghosted across the bulge in Nick's jeans, making him buck upwards again, then fingers were tugging at his belt, and the button fly of his jeans. Once Greg had pulled Nick's jeans and briefs free of Nick's golden body, he sat back and stared down at the older man for a moment.

Watching, as Greg's tongue peaked out to moisten dry lips, Nick moaned at the recent memory of the sensations that tongue had invoked.

"Greg, please," Nick whispered brokenly.

"Tell me what you want, Nicky," Greg murmured huskily.

"Your mouth. Please, want your mouth on me!" Nick's fingers were twisting into Greg's sleeping bag, as he fought the urge to reach out and pull Greg to him.

Then Greg was straddling him, lips crushing Nick's in a near bruising kiss. And when had Greg taken his own jeans and boxer briefs off? Nick was too lost to care. He reached up to tangle his fingers in Greg's hair, but he wasn't fast enough, as Greg was working his way down Nick's body again. He didn't stop at Nick's navel this time, though. He continued south until he reached Nick's leaking erection.

Blowing a cool breath across the heated flesh, Greg met Nick's glazed gaze. Nick knew his pupils were probably blown, causing his brown eyes to be nearly black.

"Please!" the word fell from Nick's lips on a sigh, as Greg's tongue touched Nick's taut, flaming skin for the first time. As Greg's tongue dipped into Nick's slit, Nick let out a strangled, "Ah..."

"Fuck! You taste so good, Nicky!" Greg said, before taking the head of Nick's cock into his mouth.

"Oh, God!" Nick cried out, as his every fantasy was blown out of the water by how much better the real thing really was.

Twisting his tongue around Nick's aching need, Greg took even more of Nick's impressive length into his mouth. When Nick bucked up again, Greg's hands went to his hips, holding the older man down, so he wouldn't be choked.

More words fell out of Nick's mouth, as Greg drove him ever closer to the edge. "So close, G! G- gotta cum!"

Greg, mouth still busily working Nick's member, met Nick's eyes, and seemed to plead with him, "Cum for me, Nicky!"

With a wordless shout, Nick was shooting into the back of Greg's mouth. Greg took it all, swallowing greedily, as if he had been lost in the desert, without water, and was now getting his first drink in days.

Letting Nick's softening cock slide from his mouth, Greg crawled up Nick's body, claiming his mouth in a searing kiss. As Greg shared Nick's taste with him, Nick felt his cock twitch. Then Greg pulled away from the kiss, and rubbed his own still painfully erect cock against Nick's reawakening one.

"I want to feel you in me, Nicky. You up for that?"

The innuendo was not lost on Nick, as his body continued to respond, and he cursed again, "Fuck, G! I need to feel you around me!"

Greg pulled away abruptly, and Nick moaned at the loss of contact, suddenly afraid the younger man had changed his mind. Lust hooded brown eyes followed Greg, as he scrambled over to his bag and retrieved the condoms and lube 'Rick had so thoughtfully forgotten in Greg's sleeping bag.

Then Greg was back, straddling his hips, thrusting his erection into Nick's, causing them both to moan with need.

Nick watched in fascination, as Greg opened the lube to dribble it on his fingers. Before Greg had gotten that far, though, Nick had wrapped his hand around Greg's cock, sweeping his thumb across the slit. Greg's head fell back, and he nearly dropped the lube, as his hands began to tremble.

"Nicky!" he breathed out, as he turned desire filled eyes on Nick. The way Greg's eyes widened almost comically, when Nick brought his pre-cum slicked thumb to his mouth and sucked on it, suggested that Greg hadn't anticipated Nick doing that.

A low rumble that could almost have been a purr escaped Nick's throat, as he savored Greg's taste on his tongue.

With a moan, Greg finally managed to lube up his fingers, and positioned them at the entrance to his body. He sighed, as he pushed one finger in, quickly adding a second. He scissored the two fingers in and out, as Nick watched the pleasure on his face.

"Can't wait to have you in me," Greg breathed, as he continued working his fingers inside of himself. "Going to feel so good to have your cock buried in my ass. I'll make you scream, as I massage you in ways you've never felt before, Nicky!"

Then Greg was pressing a wrapped condom into Nick's hand, his own trembling too much to help Nick put it on. After rolling the condom down his dripping hard-on, Nick lifted Greg over him, easing the younger man down on his cock. Greg paused often, allowing himself time to adjust to Nick's intrusion into his body.

When Greg was finally fully impaled on Nick, he leaned forward, lacing his fingers in Nick's, laying his chest against Nick's.

"Doesn't this feel so right, Nicky?" he murmured in Nick's ear, as he slowly began to move on Nick.

When Greg buried his face in Nick's neck, the older man abruptly rolled them so that now Greg was on the bottom. He quickened the pace that Greg had begun, thrusting his pelvis into the younger man, drawing a hissed, "Yesss!" from Greg.

Attacking Greg's neck, as he continued to rock into the younger man, Nick nipped at a spot just under Greg's ear, then sucked, hard. This pleasure-pain caused Greg to arch up into Nick.

"Harder, please!" Greg begged, wrapping a leg around Nick's waist, to pull Nick into him as far as possible. "Want to feel you, even when I'm in the saddle later!" Greg pleaded.

Grunting with effort, skin slapping against skin, Nick complied, thrusting harder into Greg.

A moment later, Greg's release spurted onto their chests, and sent Nick over the edge again, and he did scream, as Greg's tight passage massaged his aching cock.

As they came down from their high, Nick leaned down and licked some of Greg's release up, then moved up to kiss the younger man, sharing Greg's taste, as Greg had done for him, earlier. Greg hummed in pleasure, then sighed in disappointment, as Nick pulled gently out of him.

Grabbing the first thing in reach, his shirt, Greg wiped them both up, then balled the shirt up so it would only stick to itself, and set it aside.

Nick had flopped onto his back, sighing in contentment. Gazing at Greg, Nick saw a hesitant, questioning look form in the younger man's eyes.

"C'mere, G," he said, holding his arm away from his body, so Greg could move into his embrace.

A relieved smile settled on Greg's face, and he snuggled into Nick's side.

"Was it everything you thought it would be, Nicky?" he asked quietly, resting his head on Nick's chest, listening to the steady beat of the older man's heart.

"And more, G," Nick replied, turning so that he could tangle his legs in Greg's. "Let's stay here for a couple of days. We won't be able to get much farther up the trail before we have to turn back, anyway."

"M'kay," was Greg's soft response, as he slipped into sleep.

Nick followed Greg into slumber a few minutes later, the younger man's hair tickling Nick's nose, where he had rested his face against Greg's head.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: More M/M love inside. If you're under 17 or don't like that kind of thing, don't read.

Send me those reviews! Love to read them and see what everyone thinks! :)

Only a few more chapters to go!

Chapter 6

The loss of Nick's body heat woke Greg up a couple of hours later. Rolling over, he watched the older man pulling on his jeans and boots.

"Please, don't pull away again," Greg pleaded quietly, reaching out towards Nick.

Nick finished pulling on his boots, pulling his pant legs down over them, then turned toward Greg, a reassuring smile on his face. "I'm not, Greg, promise! I don't know about you, though, but I'm getting hungry. And the horses need tending to." To prove that he wasn't pulling away from Greg again, he leaned in and gave Greg a tender kiss on the lips, before murmuring, "With a little help, we can be back in here faster."

A contented smile settled on Greg's features, as he replied, "Okay. Give me a few minutes to get dressed."

As Nick moved toward the tent flap, Greg arched a brow and quietly said, "Nicky?"

Looking back over his shoulder at his younger lover, Nick said, "Yeah?"

"Forgetting something?" Greg's voice became husky, as he watched powerful muscles ripple under the smooth skin of Nick's bare back.

Laughing lightly, Nick said, "It's not cold out, and besides, I don't intend to be clothed for too long, anyway."

Moaning at the implications of that statement, Greg watched Nick slip out of the tent, then scrambled to get dressed himself.

By the time Greg got out of the tent, Nick was just finishing up with the horses. Still self-conscious of his scars, Greg had put on a clean T-shirt. He didn't know if Nick had noticed them during their earlier love making, wasn't sure if the older man had even thought about the fact that Greg was permanently damaged.

Greg was crouched down by the campfire, preparing a pot of coffee, when Nick's fingers brushed across his shoulders in passing.

"Why'd you put a shirt on?"

Greg wasn't sure if Nick truly didn't feel the bumpy texture of his scarred skin under the cotton shirt, or if Nick just didn't care about it. But Greg suddenly felt uncomfortable. He shifted to the side, trying to get Nick to move his hand from where it had settled right above one of the worst of his scars.

"My back," he mumbled quietly, trying to finish up preparing the pot of coffee as quickly as he could.

Confused at first, Nick said, "Huh?" Then realization dawned on him, and he jerked his hand away, "Oh, my God! I'm an idiot! I never thought... I mean, it didn't even... I'm sorry! I didn't hurt you, did I?"

Greg found it incredibly cute, the way Nick was suddenly rambling, something he'd never equate with the older man. Suddenly Nick was now crouched next to him, concerned brown eyes focused on Greg's face, his hand on Greg's arm now, instead of his back.

"They don't hurt. Haven't really, for a long time. They just get tight sometimes, when I'm under a lot of stress. I just don't go shirtless anymore."

"Will you- will you let me see them, later?" When Greg hesitated, Nick said, "It's okay, you don't have to."

Meeting Nick's eyes, Greg said, "No, it's alright. I want you to see them. It's only fair that you know you're getting damaged goods." Trying to make light of what he'd said, Greg continued, "That way you can always take me back before the warrantee expires."

Leaning in towards Greg, Nick brushed his lips across the younger man's, before saying, "I think I'm about as damaged as you are, just not visibly, so I guess I better offer the same line about the warrantee. I just got you, and I can already tell you, I don't ever want to return you."

Burying his face in the crook of Nick's neck, Greg sighed, "I wouldn't ever return you, either, Nicky!"

Nick's stomach chose that moment to rumble, causing Greg to bark out a laugh, and pull away from Nick.

"Pour the coffee, and I'll get some trail mix and dried fruit out for breakfast," Nick suggested, straightening up with a crack and pop of his knees.

When their hunger had been assuaged, Nick pulled Greg gently back into the tent.

While Nick was zipping up the tent flap, Greg turned away from him and tugged his shirt off over his head. He knelt on his sleeping bag, head bowed, eyes closed, waiting for the rejection he was sure would come.

He heard a gasp, but it wasn't one of disgust, more one of shock at the extent of the scars on Greg's back. Greg let out a gasp of his own, when Nick's fingers brushed across the rippled and melted skin along his shoulder blades.

Risking a glance over his shoulder, Greg watched Nick's face. There was no disgust, or pity, just an intense look of concentration as Nick seemed to be studying and memorizing Greg's scars.

"They don't disgust you?" Greg's voice was quiet, uncertain.

"Nothing about you could ever disgust me, G," Nick said, moving up behind Greg, pressing his chest to the younger man's scarred back. Running his hands down Greg's arms to his hands, Nick laced their fingers together, and wrapped his arms around the younger man.

Sighing, Greg leaned back against Nick, loving how they just seemed to fit together. Nick's lips on the heated skin of Greg's neck caused the younger man to moan in need.

"I don't think I'll ever get enough of you!" Nick breathed into his ear.

Now Nick's hands were wandering down to the fly of Greg's jeans, deftly unbuttoning them. Nick helped Greg awkwardly remove his jeans and boots, then tackled his own, before pulling Greg back onto his lap.

Greg grabbed a condom and the lube from where they had been discarded on the tent floor earlier, and thrust them into Nick's hand. "Want you in me! Please!" he begged, letting his head fall back onto Nick's shoulder.

Nick hesitated, "Shouldn't you be prepped again?"

Grabbing the condom package back from Nick, Greg ripped it open, with an impatient, "So soon after last time, I'm still ready. Nicky! Please!"

Accepting the condom from Greg, Nick shifted a little so he could slide it down his leaking need. Once Nick had lubed up, Greg settled back onto Nick's cock, hissing at the pleasurable sensations beginning to shoot through his body.

Nick wrapped his arms around Greg's waist again, pulling the younger man flush against his chest, wanting to feel Greg's scars against him.

The shiver that shot through Greg, as Nick's tongue traced a fiery path from the dip where Greg's shoulder met his neck, up to the space just behind his ear made Nick's cock twitch inside of Greg. This elicited a low keen of pleasure from Greg, as Nick's cock hit the bundle of nerves deep inside Greg's body.

"This is what you do to me!" Nick rasped brokenly against the shell of Greg's ear, and he finally started to move.

"Nicky!" Greg screamed, as Nick's hand engulfed the younger man's cock, beginning to pump in time to his movements inside of Greg.

Nick was nuzzling against the scars high on Greg's back, placing butterfly kisses to them, as he thrust slowly in and out of Greg, bringing them both toward the precipice.

"Cum with me, Greg!" Nick murmured into Greg's ear, when he couldn't bare the wait any longer.

Nick's name fell from Greg's lips, as ribbons of cum coated Greg's chest, stomach, and Nick's hand. At the same time, Nick breathed, "I love you!" into Greg's ear, and deep inside of Greg's body, he filled the tip of the condom with his own seed.

Slowly pulling off of Nick, Greg retrieved the same shirt he'd used earlier, and cleaned himself up, handed the shirt to Nick to wipe his hand on. Nick pulled off the condom, and placed it with the one he'd used earlier.

Curling up against Nick a few minutes later, Greg inquired quietly, "Did you mean what you said?" He prayed his hopes and dreams wouldn't be crushed.

"More than anything, G. I love you!" Nick pulled Greg up, and captured his lips in a tender kiss, full of love and promise.

They spent the rest of that day and the next alternately making love, and talking. They even found themselves sharing a companionable silence a time or two, just enjoying being tangled up together.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The ride back into Vegas was quiet, at least on Greg's part. Nick tried to engage him in conversation, but Greg just seemed to withdraw farther into himself with each mile they came closer to Nick's house. Before reaching Nick's house, they stopped at the stable and got the horses settled back into their stalls, and left the horse trailer.

When Nick pulled the truck up into the driveway of his house a few minutes after leaving the stables behind, Greg didn't seem to realize they'd arrived, as he just sat, staring at his hands.

Guessing what was going through the younger man's mind, Nick got quietly out of the truck and went around to the passenger side. He opened the door, and laced the fingers of his left hand through the fingers of Greg's right hand, and gently pulled him from the truck.

Wide, frightened caramel eyes finally met Nick's eyes, and Greg quietly asked the question Nick knew had been running through the younger man's mind, "What now?"

Leaning in, pinning Greg against the side of his truck, Nick pushed his thigh between Greg's legs, and rubbed his aching arousal against Greg's thigh. Greg sighed, melted in to him, and just clung to Nick.

Pulling back, so he could look Greg in the eye again, Nick said, "I won't lie to you, I still have to sort some stuff out in my head, and there's a couple of people I really need to talk to. I want this, though. I want _you_! Give me until the end of your shift, tomorrow morning, G, then come over."

Greg arched an eyebrow at Nick, "Only a day to sort through the stuff in your head?"

"The day is to have those conversations. I can only sort through the stuff in my head with you by my side," Nick's lips curved up in a blinding smile, as he leaned in and claimed Greg's lips with his own. When he pulled breathlessly back a few moments later, he said, "I don't think I could go any longer without you." A slight frown flitted across Nick's face, etching deeper lines across his forehead, "You know, I didn't have any more nightmares, with you sleeping beside me."

Reaching up, Greg smoothed his fingers across Nick's forehead, easing the lines away, an easy smile settling on his own face, "And that's a bad thing?"

"N-No," Nick began, then, "I just don't know how I'm going to sleep without you, tonight." Nick rested his forehead against Greg's, locking eyes with the younger man, "You keep the nightmares away."

"Don't sleep then, Nicky. You start back to work next week anyway, so you need to get back into your work routine. Stay up the rest of today, and all of tonight, then we can crawl into bed together in the morning." One of Greg's hands found its way to Nick's back, and began rubbing up and down Nick's spine soothingly.

Burying his face in the crook of Greg's neck, Nick murmured, "That sounds good." Then he pulled back, and met Greg's gaze once more. "You better get home and get some sleep. You have to work tonight."

With a groan, Greg complained, "Don't remind me! This week with you has been pure bliss, and I don't want it to end!"

Leaning in towards Greg again, Nick pressed his lips to the younger man's, groaning in pleasure when his tongue was allowed entrance to Greg's mouth. Pulling back again a few minutes later, Nick sighed, "Every minute we're together is pure bliss." Pulling a dazed Greg away from the side of the Silverado, Nick gently pushed him towards the curb, where Greg's silver VW Jetta was parked, "Go! You won't get any sleep if you stay here. I won't have Grissom mad at you on my account." To himself he thought, _Even if Grissom did orchestrate this whole week, I won't take the chance of having him pissed off at you._

Nick waited until Greg gathered his bags from the back of the truck, had gotten in his car, and was pulling away from the curb, before he gathered his own things up and went into the house. He'd expected the house to smell, as he hadn't really left it in pristine condition when he'd gone on vacation. The trash can had been overflowing with empty take out boxes and pizza boxes, and he'd left dirty clothes strewn across the floor. To say he'd been a mess would have been the understatement of the year.

The house was immaculate, and there was a note on the kitchen counter, along with a few other items.

Picking up the note, Nick glanced quickly at the signature, a smile tugging at his lips. _Nicky, cleaned the place up for you. If all went well on your trip, you may find these useful. 'Rick._

'Rick had thoughtfully left an assortment of lubes and massage oils.

A blush spreading across his face at the thought of how well 'Rick seemed to know him, Nick moved towards the answering machine, which was blinking for attention.

Amongst telemarketer calls, there were two calls from his dad. The first one was from the day after Nick had left on the camping trip with Greg. "Hey, Pancho! I hope that the fact that you're not home means you're doing better, out of the house to have some fun. Give me a call, when you get this." The second one was two days later, "Pancho! Was worried when you didn't call back, so I called your boss. He said you're out camping, so here's hoping you're having a good time. Give us a call when you get home. If you don't, you may find us on your doorstep, as your mother is still worried sick about you."

Picking up the phone, Nick dialed the familiar number. Deciding that now was as good a time as any to get the first conversation out of the way.

"Stokes residence," Judge Stokes spoke into the phone, when he answered it.

"Cisco!" Nick responded in greeting.

"Hey, Pancho! How was your camping trip?" Judge Stokes inquired, and Nick could hear a creak of leather, making him picture his father sitting in his home office, in the worn leather office chair he'd had for longer than Nick could remember.

"It was good, Dad."

"Who went with you? Is Mishi still as incorrigible as always?"

"It was supposed to be Warrick Brown – you remember him, don't you? – and Greg Sanders, both guys I work with, but Warrick backed out last minute." Nick barked a laugh before continuing, "I think I'm missing a couple of chunks out of my shin. Nearly lost a chunk out of the seat of my pants, too. It doesn't pay to be distracted around that animal!" Nick hoped his dad would ask about that last statement.

"I hope you don't mind that I called your boss. Your mom's been so worried about you, since..." Judge Stokes didn't go any further, not wanting to dredge up memories of that day from hell.

"No, it's fine, Dad. Dad?"

"Yeah, son?"

"Greg..." he paused, and was about to continue, but he didn't get a chance to finish, as his dad interrupted him.

"Your mother and I met him at the hospital. You two are... together, aren't you?"

"Wha?" Nick squeaked in confusion.

"He came in several times, before you were released. You slept, most of the time you were there, but it was always a tense sleep, except when Greg was there. He never touched you, just talked to us, but it seemed that the sound of his voice caused the tension to melt from you. He tried to avoid staring at you, but I caught him at it a couple of times. He loves you, very much," there was no accusation, no blame in Judge Stokes voice. He was just stating the facts as he'd seen them.

Laughing nervously, Nick said, "We weren't together, then. We'd... flirted... in the lab, on and off, for years, but I guess neither one of us are the investigators we thought we were. We were both blind. Grissom and 'Rick orchestrated the whole trip to force our hands." He paused, drawing in a deep breath, before very quietly speaking again, "Are you disappointed, that I gave in to my... urges?"

There was a prolonged silence, and Nick began to think they'd been cut off, when Judge Stokes finally spoke again, "You could never disappoint me, Nicky! I'll always worry about you, though." When Nick was about to interrupt, Judge Stokes cut him off, "You're my son, it's my job to worry about you!"

"But, what you told me, right before I moved to Vegas," Nick began.

"Nicky, if there's nothing else I've learned in a lifetime of being a father, it's that I have no say in who my kids lose their hearts to. As long as you love each other, I'll be happy for you. I do suggest you bring him home, over the next long holiday. Your mother would kill me, if I didn't extend the invitation."

Nick smiled, and it reflected in his voice, as he said, "Thanks, Dad! That really means a lot!"

They spoke for a while longer, then said their goodbyes. After hanging up the phone, Nick looked at the time. He needed to find out if Grissom would be in his office later, but now wasn't the time to try calling the supervisor, as Grissom should be home, sleeping right now.

Deciding to give Grissom a call later in the day, when he was sure to be up, Nick went into his room to clear out some space for Greg. At some point, Nick knew they would have to talk about something permanent, but he wasn't sure if this early in the game was a good idea to discuss moving in together.

Never one to barge into anyone's office, even if the door was standing wide open in invitation, Nick knocked on the door jam to Grissom's office.

Grissom's voice carried through the shelves of preserved oddities, "Come in, Nick."

Moving through the maze of shelves, Nick found Grissom seated behind his desk, with a mountain of paperwork in front of him.

Grissom sighed, setting a file aside, and pulling his glasses off of his nose long enough to rub his face, before replacing them. He smiled tiredly at Nick, and waved him to a seat.

Returning the smile, Nick chose a chair and sat down, leaning back comfortably.

"You look good, Nicky. That camping trip must have been just what the doctor ordered," Grissom said with a slight smirk. "How're you doing?"

"I'm doing good, Gris. I go to my first therapy session tomorrow afternoon, and have my psyche eval by the end of the week. I'll be good to come back next week." Straightening up slightly, Nick directed a piercing gaze at Grissom.

"What?" Grissom asked, arching a brow at the younger CSI.

"I've been trying to wrap my head around why you did it."

"Did what?" Grissom asked, feigning innocence.

"You're Catholic."

"Lapsed Catholic," Grissom reminded the younger man before Nick could continue.

"Lapsed Catholic," Nick corrected himself, then went on, "Still, I know the Pope's view on certain things, and even lapsed Catholics still..."

Again Grissom cut him off, "There's a reason I'm lapsed, Nicky. And it's more than the conflicts between my scientific views and religion." Taking a breath, Grissom's intense blue eyes locked on Nick's, "I've never before seen two people who compliment and complete each other the way you and Greg do. I couldn't just sit by and let the two of you allow that to slip through your fingers. Especially not after..." Grissom paused, but unlike Nick's father, he went ahead and voiced it, "Especially not after your abduction and burial."

The two men sat in silence for a moment. Grissom's eyes stayed locked on Nick, but Nick had allowed his own gaze to wander down to the arm rest of the chair he was sitting in. He idly picked at a gouge in the wood with a fingernail, before he looked up again.

"Thanks, Gris. What about- what about Ecklie?"

Grissom snorted derisively, "With the lab's anti-discrimination policies, he wouldn't dare do anything. Just keep your PDA's to the flirting the two of you've always engaged in, and no one will be the wiser, especially Ecklie."

A/N: Only one more chapter to go.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

One Year Later

Greg shifted in the saddle, much more comfortable there than he had been a year ago. They'd been on the trail for a couple of days, and were nearly back to the campsite where their relationship had finally started.

Nick was bringing up the rear, on Mishi, with the pack horses, and he could hear the older man curse as Mishi must have twisted his head around to try to take a chunk from his shin, again.

Greg couldn't believe it had been a year since the events that had lead the two men to be out here. Nick had gone back to work, a little nervous at first, but had settled right back into routine. They both wound up at Nick's house everyday after shift, tangled up in each other. Just a month later, Nick couldn't stand it anymore, and asked Greg to move in with him. Greg hadn't really even gone to his apartment, except to check messages and mail, in that month, so he readily agreed. They had even told their friends at work. About the only people still clueless at work were Hodges (he'd inadvertently blab to Ecklie), and Ecklie.

There had only been one time in the time since Nick and Greg had gotten together that Nick'd had any nightmares. Grissom had sent Greg to a week long conference in New York. Everyone at work had commented about how haggard Nick had looked. Grissom promised he would send them both to the same conferences, from now on.

When they finally reached the campsite where they had revealed their feelings for one another, they discovered Dan and April, the couple they had shared the campsite with for a night the previous year. Apparently, they made this trip yearly, as well.

Nick, being back to his old self, was much more gracious and outgoing towards the other couple than he had been the year before, inviting them to share the campfire for the evening. As they sat around the campfire that evening, Greg recalled what Dan had said to his wife the year before, about thinking Nick and Greg were together. A smile of mischief had lit up his face, as he scooted into Nick's side, as Dan said something to Nick about the Dallas Cowboys, Nick's favorite football team. Oblivious, Nick had just wrapped an arm around Greg, and pulled him close, as he tossed a comment back to Dan.

Dan's eyes widened in surprise, and he opened his mouth to say something, but April's elbow landed in his gut about that time, making him grunt in pain. After apologizing to her husband, she made some excuses, and dragged him back to their tent. She glanced back over her shoulder, and winked at Greg, who smiled in return.

Nick gave Greg a baffled look, and said, "What was that all about?"

But Greg just shrugged, jumped up and grabbed Nick's hand, pulling him towards their tent. The sun had set, and the only light was what the campfire cast.

When Greg turned towards Nick, after he'd zipped up the tent flap, he felt Nick take hold of his left hand, and something cold touch the skin of his ring finger. Then Nick laced their fingers together, and leaned in to ghost his lips across the shell of Greg's ear, as he whispered, "Marry me!"

Greg's shouted, "Oh, God! Yes!" echoed through the night. As he threw himself into Nick's arms, it vaguely registered in Greg's mind that he heard April exclaim loudly, "Daniel O'Neill, don't you bother those boys, they're fine!" Then his lips were on Nick's, tongue begging entrance to Nick's mouth.

With a groan, Nick's mouth opened to him, and their tongues met, dueling playfully. When Greg's hands found their way to Nick's belt, Nick pulled back a little.

"The neighbors, Greg." There was no panic, or insecurity in Nick's voice, just a statement of fact.

Greg snorted a laugh, "Nicky, they already think that's what we're doing. Might as well give them the real deal." Greg's hands went back to Nick's belt, and Nick caved, as nimble fingers found their way inside his jeans.

A/N: Well, here it is, the end of another story. Sad to see it end, but glad that it means I'll be able to work on a one-shot for Fracked tonight. :) As always, reviews fuel me, so please, drop me a review!


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